It’ll take only four years — not five — to get an undergraduate degree and be credentialed as a teacher in California under a new higher education plan.

California State University campuses in Carson, Fullerton, Long Beach, Los Angeles and Pomona were among 17 across the state to be awarded grants that will support four-year teaching certificate programs aimed at easing a statewide shortage of teachers, the university announced Thursday.

Instead of having to add a year for a teaching credential after graduating with a four-year undergraduate degree, aspiring educators will be able to receive their teaching credential while studying for the undergraduate degree, thus requiring only four total years to get in front of K-12 students in California classrooms.

The 17 CSU campuses received a total of nearly $5.2 million in Integrated Program Grants from the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing.

CSU officials said reducing the time to earn a degree and teaching certificate from five to four years can save students an average of about $20,000 in tuition, books and related expenses.

“In addition, to incentivize more students to enter the teaching profession, teacher candidates will also be eligible for $16,000 in state and federal grants,” said Marquita Grenot-Scheyer, CSU assistant vice chancellor of Teacher Education Program and Public School Programs. “There’s never been a better time to enter the profession given these new flexible credentialing options and financial incentives.”

The grants are specifically designed to expand the number teachers earning STEM — science, technology, engineering and math — and bilingual credentials, with CSU officials said are the areas of greatest need in the state.

Seven CSU campuses, including Cal State Long Beach and Cal State Northridge, already offer four-year teacher programs. The grants will expand the offering to 16 more campuses, which will begin admitting students in the program in fall 2018.

Cal State Dominguez Hills received $227,262; Cal State Fullerton received $240,648; Long Beach received $249,999; Los Angeles $250,000; and Pomona $246,322.

–City News Service 

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